Writing skills (Rachna) - letters, reports, notices, essays
रचना: what is tested
The writing section carries a large block of marks and is scored on format, content and language. Question types: औपचारिक पत्र (आवेदन, शिकायत), अनौपचारिक पत्र, वृत्तांत लेखन, सूचना, and निबंध.
Core rules
- औपचारिक पत्र order: प्रेषक का पता → दिनांक → प्रति (सेवा में) → विषय → संबोधन → नमस्कार/सविनय निवेदन → two or three paragraphs → समापन → हस्ताक्षर → नाम.
- सूचना: संस्था का नाम, the heading 'सूचना', दिनांक, a body of four or five lines answering all five W's, then नाम and पद.
- वृत्तांत: past tense, third person, headline, place and date, what happened, public response, conclusion.
- निबंध: three or four paragraphs - भूमिका, two विकास paragraphs, उपसंहार - with one example or fact per body paragraph.
- Respect the word limit; a 250-word answer for a 100-word notice loses relevance marks.
Worked example
Notice for a school excursion to Ajanta. Line 1: school name, then the centred heading 'सूचना'. Line 2: date. Body: what (excursion), where (Ajanta), when (12 March, 7 a.m.), who (Std XI–XII), cost and consent form, last date to register. Close with 'प्राचार्य' and a signature space. Reasoning: each W is one clause; nothing about the beauty of the caves, because a notice informs and does not describe.
Traps
Missing विषय line or दिनांक in a formal letter; informal tone in a formal letter; writing a notice as a plain paragraph without a heading; confusing वृत्तांत (past report) with सूचना (advance announcement); overshooting the word limit.